Jorge Lorenzo: Marc Marquez to leave Honda? “Contract not usual, things have changed”
The six-time MotoGP champion’s ambition to add to his immens🥃e tally is already u🐼nder serious threat, just two rounds in 2023.
His crash at Portimao, the subsequent injury and penal🧔ty and the ongoing limitations of his Repsol Honda bike mean Marquez’s talent alone is unlikely to b❀e enough.
Three-time champion Lorenzo spent his final MotoGP season as Marquez’s teammate at Repsol Honda but is now urging him to conওsider other options.
"They offered him four years when it was not usual👍 and for a lot of money,” .
“Now things have change♛d and Ducati is far superior.
“When the time comes to renew the contract from Honda, he will have to assess whether he wants to have a better bike or continue with Hond🎉a's economic conditions."
Marquez crashed out of the season-opening Portuguese MotoGP, and missed the second round in Argentina due to injury. It is unconfirmed if he is healthy enough to compete at the 168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:MotoGP Grand Pri🦄x of the Americas next weekend.
He has a double long lap penalty looming oওver him, although Honda have appealed it and the MotoGP Court of Appeals are still considering whether Marquez must serve it in Texas.
The original penalty was worded that he must serve it in Argentina, a race he missed through injury. It was then reworded so he must be penalis🃏ed whenever he returns which is why Honda have appealed.
“What is written, is written and cꦓannot be changed,” said Lorenzo, insisting that Honda will be successful with th💛eir appeal.
“It's not fair change for Marquez, theᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚy would almost certainly h🌄ave to win."
Mar☂quez received criticism for his crash into Miguel Oliveira in Portꦅimao, arguably the result of trying to extract too much from his below-par bike.
"Marc has that DNA,” Lorenzo explained.
“That makes him always have the knife between his ಌteeth, but what he always w𝓡ants to do is win and that's why he risks more.
“He has the worst Honda for a long time and he has to decide if he wants to continue racing like this or 🐠if he decides to change his riding way with less risk t🌳o fall less and score more points."
The two rounds of sprint races so far have m😼eant that incidents and i꧃njuries have racked up.
Both Repsol Honda riders - Marquez and Joan Mir - missed Argentina due ಞto injuries. Oliveira, Pol Espargaro and Enea Bastianini have also missed races already.
Lorenzo’s verdict: "I loved sprint races, I am very much in favour but I do think that race direction should be very 🎶attentive and be able to punish if it has to be do💞ne.
“It's a spectacle. There are more races and the risk of it has doubled. The fight for podiums 𓄧and victories is between 5 and 7 riಞders.
“The race direction needs to be stricter."
So, can Lorenzo’s ex-rival and teammate Marquez storm baඣck into title contention this season?
"No one can know if Marc M🤡arquez will return to his best version,” Lorenzo said. “If he's good physically, he's capable of the best."
James was a sp🌌orts journalist at Sky Sports for a decade covering everything from American sports, to football, to F1.
